As presenters we are in the privileged position of being able to share our knowledge, experience, and passion with an audience. However, with this privilege comes responsibility – a responsibility to ourselves to ensure we don’t kill our credibility, but more importantly, a responsibility to our audience to ensure that our message is relevant and interesting to listen to. It is vital that you avoid these 11 mistakes that will make your audience cringe...

On International Women’s Day, I was reflecting on the importance of women’s voices in business, politics, the media and the community in general. It’s time more women took the time to develop the confidence and skills to speak in public, and in this post I share six reasons why...

It often surprises me how many presenters are happy to stand behind a lectern and deliver a speech; it really doesn’t do them any favours when it comes to communicating their message effectively. In this post I share 8 problems connected with presenting from behind a lectern.

Having the right speakers and break out session facilitators is crucial to the success of an event. Therefore, if you’re in charge of planning, it’s important to put time, effort (and money) into finding the right speakers who will engage and inspire your audience and ensure your event is talked about for years to come. In this post I share my top tips to help you book the ideal speaker.

Often people worry about whether they can use notes during a presentation and there are arguments for and against it. Having some notes to jog your memory can help ease nerves but it’s important to ensure they don’t detract from your presentation. This post covers several options for using notes and provides tips on how to use them effectively.

The Scottish EDGE round 8 saw 22 companies pitching to a panel of expert judges for up to £100K each in grant funding and loans. If you’re considering entering any kind of pitching competition, read on for my tips on how you can ensure your pitch stands out for all the right reasons.

Regardless of whether you worry like crazy when asked to do a presentation or see it as a great opportunity to share your knowledge or passion, you will probably have a certain way of preparing what you're going to say.

And whilst what you say is fundamental, how you say it is equally, if not more important. In order to bring your words to life and ensure they have the most impact, you need to prime the elements that communicate the words – your body, your voice and your mind.

I am often asked how many words should be included when drafting a speech. This can depend on a number of factors, not least the language being spoken and the culture in which it is spoken; speech rates can vary from region to region, person to person and even each time you speak. In this post, find out what impacts your rate of speech and how many words you should be aiming for if scripting your pitch or presentation...

More and more business pitching competitions are taking place around the UK offering opportunities to win prizes, support and funding to help grow your business. In this post I share pitching tips from the Scottish EDGE fund, tips that can be used in all types of situations to give your company an edge. Is it time for you to polish your pitch?